Bellows-action for autopneumatic musical instruments.



C. S. BURTON.

BELLOWS ACTION FOR AUTOPNEUMATIG MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. APPLICATION FILEDJAN. 5, 1910.

1,062,885. Patnted May 27,1913.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLAMOGRAPH CO.,WASNINGTON, D. c.

C. S. BURTON. BELLOWS ACTION FOR AUTOPNEUMATI O MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.APPLICATION-FILED JAN. 5, 1910.

1,062,885, Patented May 27,1913.

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UNITED STATES PATENT @FFTCF.

CHARLES S. BURTON, 0F OAK PARK, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY IVIE'SNEASSIGNMENTS, TO MELVILLE CLARK PIANO COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ACORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

BELLOWS-ACTION FOR AUTOPNEUMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

Application filed. January 5,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Crmnnns S. BURTON, acitizen of the United States, residing at Oak Park, in the county ofCook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements inBellowsAction for Autopneumatic Musical Instruments, of which thefollowing is a specification, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part thereof.

The purpose of this invention is to pro vide an improved construction ofa bellows action and governing devices for producing and controlling theexhaust tension or rare iication of the air for operating the motorpneumaties of an autopneumatic instrument.

It consists in the elements and features of construction and theircombination shown and described, as indicated in the claims.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a partly sectional top plan view of thesame the portions of the pumper bellows being broken away. Fig. 2 is asection at the line 2-2 on Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a section at the line 3-3on Fig. 2. Fig. i is an end elevation of the structur shown in Figs. 1and 3. Fig. 5 is a section at the line 5-5 on Fig. 4. 6 is a section atthe line 6 6 on Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a detail section at the line 7-7 onFig. 6. Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 3, showing a modification.

The result to be accomplished by this invention is the maintenance ofany desired or predetermined relation or ratio between the tensionsproduced by the same pumpers i two different air chambers or pneumaticactions where differing tensions are required for playing differentparts of music with different degrees of intensity, as for accenting orfor playing a solo and accompaniment so that whether the music of thewhole is played loudly or softly the relative difi'erence between theaccented and unaccented parts of the solo and accompaniment shall bemaintained without the necessity of the special attention of theoperator to this feature, the change of intensity of one part resultingautomatically from the changepf intensity of the other part.

As illustrated in the drawings, the invention is applied to a bellowsaction in which all changes of intensity or force in playing areeffected by the operator increasing or Specification of Letters Patent.

diminishing the rapidity of the pedal ac- Patented May 27,1913.

1910. Serial No. 536,460.

tion operating the pumpers, so that such change is at all times underthe control of the operator and subject to his mood or interpretation ofthe music played; but it will be understood that the invention isequally applicable to structures in which the change of intensity iscontrolled or effected otherwise than by varying the pumping.

The drawings show the bellows foundation board, 1, having pumpers, 22,mounted on its upper side, and exhausting the air from a receiver, 3,mounted upon the underside of the foundation board, both punipersoperating upon the one receiver as usual, through the passages, 1 1 inthe foundation board leading from the respective pumpers to saidreceiver. From the receiver communication which so far as this inventionis concerned, may be uncontrolled, is afforded by passage, 1, in thefoundation board, leading out at the edge of said board. by a trunkpipe, 1, to any chamber which is to afiord the higher of the twotensions desired, such chamber being represented at 6, in Fig. t withoutregard to its relative position with respect to the bellows action.

Upon the moving wall of the receiver, 3, there is mounted a governorpneumatic, 5, which communicates with the receiver, 3, by a port, 3*, inthe moving wall of said receiver, the moving wall of the pneumaticcarrying a valve, 5, which closes the port, 3 upon the collapse of thegovernor pneumatic. This governor pneumatic forms part of a conduitcommunicating with any chamber in which the lesser tension is desired,represented at 7 in Fig. 4, without regard to the relative position ofsaid chamber and the bellows action. The remainder of said conduitconsists of a passage, 5", leading out of the governor pneumatic throughthe moving wall of the receiver, 3, and connected at the edge of saidmoving wall with a pipe, 8, which extends to the chamber, 7. Thecollapse of the receiver, 3, is resisted by a spring, P, attached at oneend to the moving wall and at the other end to a support, as a lever, 9,mounted and adapted to be fixed on the fixed casing of the instrument.Provision for varying tension of this spring can be made if desired bymaking the connection of the spring to the lever. by means of aneyebolt, 10, on which the nut, 11, may be adjusted, to stretch thespring more or less independently of the collapse of the pneumatic. Thecollapse of the governor pneumatic, is yieldingly resisted in likemanner by a spring, 12, similarly connected and provided with similarmeans, viz. eye bolt, 12 and nut 12", for varying its tensionindependent of the collapse of the pneumatic.

For adjusting both the springs, 12 and e, proportionately by movement ofthe lever, 9, there is provided a ratchet segment, 21, mounted on anyconvenient fixed support not shown, adjacent to the path of movement ofthe free endof the lever, 9, with which a suitable tooth, 9, on said.lever engages to retain the lever at any position to which it may bemoved within the range of the segment. Upon considering this structure,it will be observed that the tension producedin the chamber 7 exhaustedthrough the governed conduit which comprises the governor pneumatic, 5,is limited to that which will collapse the governor pneumatic againstthe tension of its spring, 12, sufficiently to seat the valve, 5*, whilethe ten-- sion produced in the chamber, 6, is unlinr ited except by thecapacity of the pumpers but it will be understood that the tension whichcan be maintained so as not to be sensibly affected by each stroke ofthe pumpers, is that which is necessary to collapse the receiver fullyagainst the resistance. of the spring, 4 The tension of this spring, lbeing adjusted so as to yield the maximum tension desired in the chamber6, and the length of the spring, 4 being so related to the range of thecollapsing movement of the receiver, 8, as to afiord desired range oftension in the collapse of the receiver, and like adjustment being madebe tween the length of the spring, 12, and the range of collapsingmovement of the gov ernor pneumatic, 5,, the collapse of the receiver,3, produced by pumping in excess of the amount of air supplied throughthe pneumatic action (varying according to the number of notes being,played), by reason of the fact that the governor pneumatic, 5. is;carried bodily with the moving wall of the receiver,- increases thetension of the spring, 12,proportionately as the tension produced in thereceiver, 8, is increased and in cheated by its collapse againstresistance of its spring, 4*; and the desired result sought is therebyaccomplished, namely, that the louder or more intense the playing of theparts of the music produced by the action of the high or ungovernedtension chamber, the louder or more intense will be the playproduced bythe action operated by the low or governed tension chamber, while bothare varied according to the rapidity of the pumping and consequentdegree of collapse of the receiver, 3.

Obviously it is not essential that the governor pneumatic, 5, should bemounted on the moving wall of the receiver. Any other position andconnections by which the movement of the moving wall of the receivertensions the springs of the governor pneu- 'ma-tic will give the desiredresult.

Fig. 8 shows a modification in which the structure is in all respects asalready described, except that the governor pneumatic, 5 1, is mountedon the upper side of the foundation board at a point convenientlysituated for communicating with the receiver through a passage, 13, inthe foundation board, and with the pneumatic action chamber, (3, by vayof a passage, 15, in the foundation board connecting with the trunkpipe, 8, leading to the said pneumatic action chamber. in this form thespring, 12, which determines the tension to which the air is controlledby the governor pneumatic, is connected at one end to a lever arm, 17,of the moving wall of the governor pneumatic, and at the other end to alever arm, 16, of the moving wall of the receiver bellows, said leverarm projecting ofl? rearwardly from the heels or hinged edges of saidmoving walls respectively. This construction it will be seen results instretching the spring, 12', to increase its tension and pull upon thegovernor pneumatic when the receiver, 3, is col- Elapsed", being thesame result eii'ected by the l other structure, as in the firstdescribed construction. The length and stiffness of the springs and thelever arms to which they are 1 attached, will be proportioned so as toallow jany desired ratio between the tension produced in the saidreceiver and pneumatic respectively by any given amount of collapse.

In the construction illustrated in the drawings, provision is shown forshifting the air connection of the ungoverned' receiver so that it shallcommunicate at will with either or both of the chambers, 6 and 7,rendering either or both efiective at the high tension which may bemaintained in the receiver governed only by the pumping and theadjustment of the lever, 9', for tensioning the spring, 4. Thisprovision consists in mounting on the ported board, 18, which forms oneend or side of both chambers, 6 and 7, a slidabl e ported bar of thenature of a valve bar, 19, to which the duct, 4, is connected, saidslidable bar having ports, 19 and 19, both leading from the connectionof the duct, i, and opening at the face of the bar which seats on theboard, 18, for registering with the ports, 6 and 7, respectively, togive the duct, 4, communication with the chamber, 6, or other chamber,7, according to the position of the slidable bar, 19. Said bar isshifted at will by a lever, 20, fulcrumed on any convenient fixedsupport and operated by any convenient connection not shown.

I claim:

1. In an auto pneumatic musical instrument in combination with two airchambers, pumpers and receiving bellows exhausted by the pumpers,conduits from the receiving bellows to the air chambers respectively,one of said conduits comprising a governor pneumatic mounted upon themoving wall of the receiver; springs which yieldingly resist thecollapse of the receiver and said governor pneumatic respectively, bothsaid springs having one end held independently of said moving wall ofthe receiver whereby the movement of the latter modifies the tension ofthe governor or spring.

2. In an auto pneumatic musical instrument in combination with pumpersand receiver bellows exhausted by the pumpers, two conduits leading fromthe receiver, air chambers to which they respectively lead, a governorpneumatic in one conduit, springs connected at one end to the movingmembers of the receiver and governor pneumatic respectively, a leverdevice to which the other ends of the springs are connected, means foradjusting and securing the lever, the points of attachment of saidsprings to said lever being distant respectively from the fulcrum of thelever proportionately to the length of the springs, whereby they areproportionately modified in tension by movement of the lever.

3. In an autopneumatic musical instrument, in combination with pumpersand a receiver exhausted thereby, two conduits leading from thereceiver; air chambers to which they respectively lead; a governorpneumatic in one conduit; springs which resist the collapse of thereceiver and governor pneumatic respectively, said springs beingconnected at one end to the moving walls of the receiver and governorpneumatic respectively; a lever to which they are connected at theirother ends, and means for adjusting the lever to vary the tension of thesprings.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand at Chicago, Illinois,this third day of January, 1910.

C. J. CI-IRIsTorrEL, M. GERTRUDE ADY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

